As previously mentioned, on Wednesday 5th February The Moray Council is meeting to discuss a report relating to the new build for Elgin High School.  The key features of the report before the meeting are:

2. RECOMMENDATION

2.1 It is recommended that The Moray Council:-

(a) allocates an additional sum of £0.8M to the project to cover the construction of an adequate school transport access solution, which includes car parking and shared access to Greenwards Primary School from the Edgar Road extension into the school site;

(b) considers the options set out in this report regarding finalising the design brief regarding the size of the school and

(c) to update the capital plan to reflect any decision.

The options being put to the Council are:

3.22 Summary description of options

Option A = Design for 720 pupils with an estimated maximum capacity for 758 pupils, Access from High School Drive only.

Option B = Design for 800 pupils, enhanced core (communal) areas for extra cost with future extension capability, plus access road from Edgar Road extension.

Option C = Design for 1000 pupils from outset for extra cost plus, access road from Edgar Road extension.

Option D = Defer a decision until any impact of decisions by the council, arising from the Sustainable Education Review is known.

Inevitably there are cost implications for Options B, C and D.

The full paper can be accessed through The Moray Council website (www.moray.gov.uk).  We remain confident that work on a new building will be starting sooner rather than later – not least because of the site investigations scheduled for the next few weeks.  Information about the Council’s decision will be added here on Wednesday afternoon.

After months of developments being restricted to meetings and planning events, suddenly the pace gets quicker.  Just this afternoon I heard that the topographic survey is to take place this Monday – even preceding the ground suitability survey!

The start of building work is getting closer.  Yesterday morning saw a site visit by staff from Balfour Beatty and the utilities.  They were looking at the potential positions for exploratory holes to be dug for ground investigations.  These could start within two weeks…  Look out on this blog for a photograph of a hole which will mark the first visible signs of the detailed planning for the construction work!

This evening we held an information session for the parents of P7 parents.  There was an excellent turn out.  It was good to meet everyone and to be able to share something of the plans for the new build.  Their youngsters will be able to spend most of their secondary school careers in the new building.  The pupils too are beginning to talk about their hopes.  We were able to share that this week we have had two meeting with staff from Balfour Beatty – the construction company.  The first looked at ways in which we can use the construction period of the curriculum.  The second was with some of the planners who wanted to look round the site.  There is definitely a growing sense of anticipation for what can be achieved.

As a start date for the new building becomes more of a reality, staff and pupils are already starting to plan how we can use the construction period as a learning experience.  First into action are the History and Modern Studies departments.  Pupils in their elective time have begun to plan the idea of placing a time capsule.  The likely container has been provided by Macduff Boatyards and would have been used to keep emergency flares dry and secure.  Now the challenge will be to decide how to fill it.  Already there is much enthusiasm and creativity with dozens of ideas being discussed.  The class are a long way from making final decisions.  There will be much discussion and consultation to come.  Look out for more details on this blog!

This morning I attended a meeting of the Steering Group.  This comprises councillors, a representative of the Parent Council and some of the Moray Council staff who are directly involved with the project.  Another encouraging meeting.  We received an update on progress.  A lot of work is ongoing between Moray Council, the architects, Hubco and Scottish Futures Trust to ensure that we can get the best possible resources for the pupils of EHS and the wider community.  Not too many details at the moment, but it is encouraging to know that folk are working hard and progress is being made.  A report is being prepared which will be presented to the full Council at the beginning of February.

Today was an important day.  Not just because of the Christmas celebration assemblies and the end of term, but also because we were able to reach agreement on the initial layout for the new build.  A teleconference call between the school, architects, Hubco and our senior project officer brought agreement on the last areas that were up for discussion.  The creativity and imagination of the architects are to be commended.  They were able to find solutions when we raised issues.  Now this plan can be sent to the mechanical and electrical engineers who will start working on the details.  There is little doubt that practicalities will require further amendments, but it is good to go into the holidays knowing that we have a design that has the potential to offer a quality experience for pupils and staff.  An exciting note to end the term.  Have a good Christmas and holiday!

After the recent announcement that provisional agreement had been reached between The Moray Council, Hubco and Scottish Futures Trust, the pace of developments has been moving fast.  There have been meetings with architects, the design team and senior staff in EHS.  The aim is to agree the basic plan before Christmas.  This afternoon we had a 75 minute telephone conference call to discuss the latest version of the plans.  It is looking good!  Although it will not be possible to achieve all that might be wished for if a blank cheque had been available, clever designing is allowing us to meet most of our goals.  The facilities are certainly looking to provide a great experience for the pupils.  More news to follow!  The first work on the grounds is still scheduled for the summer.

Elgin High School replacement project update: – December 2013

This newsletter, the last one of 2013 brings a very positive development.

Since our last update, The Project Team (The Moray Council, hubCo and Scottish Futures Trust) has been successful in gaining approval of a design scheme ‘in principle’. This is a significant move forwards.

A lot of effort has gone into finding an appropriate and affordable scheme for the school within the existing site which is acceptable to the Hub North Scotland Board. We are pleased to inform you that we now have approval to move to a detailed design which will enable us to submit planning permission in the next few months.

1. We have repositioned the school to an area of the site which largely avoids peat.
2. There is still the need to strengthen the supporting structures of the school framework by piling the foundations but this is now minimised and therefore, less costly.
3. The majority of the grass area which sits above the peat will remain undisturbed which is also a cost saving.

We are now looking at the access road to the school during the construction period to ensure that there is minimal disruption to residents, pupils and services.

There have been some adjustments with Hub North Scotland since November. Some organisational changes within their local team have been implemented. These changes have been received very positively and there is now a feeling that the pace of the project will pick up speed.

In the next few months, there will be a launch of a ‘meet the buyer’ event in Elgin. The purpose of this is to engage with local contractors who might be willing to undertake some of the work when construction commences in 2014. The Moray Council and Hub North Scotland will jointly promote this event to increase the amount of community benefit in using local firms. Further details on this will be supplied nearer the time.

This just leaves a final message to you all; to thank you for your continued interest and support in this project and to wish you a very happy Christmas and a prosperous 2014!

See you in the New Year,

If you have any queries please direct them to ehsproject@moray.gov.uk or telephone 01343 563011

Regards,
The EHS project Team.

On Wednesday afternoon we had a meeting with Martine, Senior Project Officer for the local authority, and Stuart from JMArchitects.  This followed a long meeting they had had with Hubco.  The NPR has now been signed and so we are underway again.  Over the last few weeks and months there has been a lot of behind the scenes discussions and planning to overcome the problems of the peat and the affordability gap.  We now have until the Christmas holidays to finalise the floor plans.  Hopefully the contractors will be able to start late summer 2014 with a handover date of spring 2016.  A formal statement should be issued soon by Moray Council, but this is all good news!